Boston GreenFest is a grassroots effort organized by the
Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. and its dedicated team of community volunteers. Their goal is to educate and empower people to create a more sustainable, healthier world.

Envision a world with ample, affordable, and healthy food for everyone on the planet, where our local farmers and fishermen have access to insights from spacecraft, wireless networks and machine learning to help them make better decisions. This forum showcases the transformative impact of technology on agriculture and aquaculture, taking better care of our crops and animals, informing and engaging consumers, strengthening our societies, and radically rethinking how to feed the planet.

Moderator: Dr. Adil Najam is the inaugural Dean of the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University which was founded in 2014 . He is also a Professor of International Relations and of Earth and Environment. Earlier, Prof. Adil Najam served as Vice Chancellor of the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) in Lahore, Pakistan and as the Director of the Boston University Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future.

Jared Auerbach, Owner & CEO, Red's Best, originally from Newton, MA, worked on commercial vessels in Alaska and Cape Cod during the early 2000's after he finished college. Working alongside hardworking fishermen, Jared saw how the advent of industrial technology and strict governmental regulation of open oceans impacted traditional fishing communities and family fishing businesses. He first-handedly witnessed their struggle for survival.

Megan Sheahan is the Director of Operations at Precision Agriculture for Development. Previously, she held research, research management, project management, and technical assistance roles at Cornell University, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), and Chemonics International and has worked as a consultant for various organizations, including the World Bank and African Development Bank. She holds an M.S. in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University and a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Boston University.

David Potere is the co-founder and CEO of
TellusLabs, a Boston-based startup that combines decades of satellite imagery with a machine learning platform to answer critical, time-sensitive economic and environmental questions. David co-founded Boston Consulting Group's global data science practice. At TellusLabs, David is combining his love of satellite remote sensing with nearly a decade of practical experience addressing the geospatial and data-driven questions of the Fortune 500.

Fernando Rodriguez-Villa is the General Manager at TellusLabs, responsible for leading the business and operations functions within the company. He has a passion for building commercial organizations at companies using large and unique data sets to confront pressing societal challenges.

Rory MacKean is Founder/CEO of Franklin Robotics. He is a hands-on technology leader who has developed multiple robotic platforms, with a focus on mobile outdoor robots. After starting at MobileRobots/Adept working on a variety of indoor and outdoor robots, Rory joined Harvest Automation, helping to develop the HV-100 agricultural robot. Prior to founding Franklin, Rory worked at Superpedestrian on the Copenhagen Wheel.

Sponsored by OPEN New England

Founded in 1998 in New England, OPEN - Organization of Pakistani Entrepreneurs of North America is a global organization, with chapters in twelve cities worldwide. Their mission is to accelerate entrepreneurship and business growth by bringing together entrepreneurs, leaders and professionals to collaborate, learn, and create lasting positive change worldwide.

Boston GreenFest Youth Summit

The Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. invites students 15 years old+ to join them at Faneuil Hall on Sunday, August 13th at 11 am for the International Youth Summit 2017. The summit will focus on ecoentrepreneurship and building peace. Selected students/student groups will make presentations about this theme. There will be a keynote speaker, discussions, and other activities. Students from countries across the globe will have an opportunity to connect, learn from each other and make a difference.